Coming this fall, the newest book by Dr. Amy Yasko!

Roadmap to Health
• • An individualized approach to health and wellness Understanding the basis of chronic health issues
Changing the way you look at your health creates an open road in front of you poised for a healthier life. Once you recognize that you actually do have control over your own health and wellness, you can then chart that journey. Looking at where you are today and where you want to be in the future defines the road you need to take. For some who are already vibrant and healthy it is a short trip, for others it may be the marathon that I have been helping people traverse since starting my private practice well over a decade ago. Regardless if you are merely looking to support an already healthy lifestyle or to change years of deteriorating health, this shift in approach enables you to have control in a way you most likely have never imagined. I began using this approach with adults who had issues with Chronic Fatigue, ALS, MS, IBS and Parkinson’s disease. I had spent years studying biochemical and molecular pathways for my undergraduate degree in chemistry, PhD in Microbiology/Immunology and my fellowships in Pediatric Immunology, Cancer Research, Cell Biology as well as working to design molecular tests and products for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. I found that I think in biochemical pathways. The way some people have an innate sense of direction I see pathways in the body. I have literally gotten lost driving my own children home from school, yet I can tell you how different natural products join together in traffic circles in your body. When I moved from a metropolitan area to rural Maine, I not only moved demographically. I also shifted scientifically from considering the impact of pharmaceutical products on the pathways in our system, to thinking about the use of natural products and how those could have a positive impact on those very same biochemical and molecular pathways. In my private practice, I used natural products to have a positive effect on biochemical and molecular pathways in the body, finding that was what was helping to improve health for adults with a range of chronic inflammatory conditions. This program began with adults, was adapted to help those with autism, and in this book I now define the steps to take to chart your own Roadmap to health. This is not just about autism; it is about health and well-being. I believe that as with autism, other chronic conditions are multifactorial. That underlying genetic susceptibility, along with exposure to infectious agents, toxic chemicals and the stress of lifestyle all contribute to complex health issues. In this book I will make analogies using the concept of a roadmap to help you to visualize the contribution of genetics,

epigenetics, as well as other factors that play a role in health. Understanding the contributing factors gives you the information needed to pick the right tools to get back on a path to health and well-being. Every child with autism has a parent, a grandparent and siblings, and hopefully will have children of their own someday. The predisposing genetics come from somewhere. According to current statistics the rate of autism is one in fifty. At this rate, it’s likely that every one of us has a relative, a child, an uncle a cousin or a brother that may be on the autism spectrum. Even if those same related genetics are not manifesting as autism they may be a factor in Parkinson’s, CFS, MS, Lupus or some other inflammatory condition. Recognizing that this is not just about autism, and realizing that the genetics are inherited in a familial pattern, means every single person in today’s society needs to be thinking about charting their personal roadmap to health. We live in a society where we are stressed emotionally, financially, physically and exposed to a range of toxins in our environment. Combining underlying genetic susceptibility with these other factors creates all the ingredients for a perfect storm. By understanding where our weak points are located, where the accidents are on our particular highway of life, it is possible to bypass those detours, accidents and breakdowns and chart a better roadmap to health. This is the approach that I used in my private practice for adults, for children and have been sharing online at no cost. This is the approach that is explored through this book, simplified by analogies of driving a car and following a roadmap that we can all understand. This is the approach that will help you and your doctor to bring you better health and well-being.